


The Skeptic's Dictionary

by skepticseptic



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Car Ride, Chapter 13 is NSFW, Creepy Forest, Emotional Comfort, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, Lazy Mornings, M/M, Movie Night, Non-Linear Narrative, Pining, Ryan getting stuck in a room, Sleepy Cuddles, Smut, proposal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-28
Updated: 2018-04-05
Packaged: 2019-01-15 22:12:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 7,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12329892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skepticseptic/pseuds/skepticseptic
Summary: Based on "The Lover's Dictionary" by David Levithan





	1. Asleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Asleep (adj.): in a state of sleep_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short chapter, following chapters will probably be at least twice as long if not longer than this :)

                It was one of those kinds of nights again. Ryan had finally gone to sleep after hours of muted panic staring blindly at the shadows of the room, but now Shane was the one that couldn’t sleep. He stared at the slightly blurry ceiling, trying every way he could think of to trick his body into the sweet embrace of unconsciousness, but nothing was working. He quietly shifted to lay on his side, freezing as Ryan moved in his sleep. He didn’t want to wake him up again, the poor guy had finally been able to go to sleep for the first time that night. Once Ryan had stilled again, quiet snores filling the silence of the house, Shane relaxed.

                He studied Ryan’s face as he slept. He felt kind of creepy to be honest, but it wasn’t often that he got the chance to see the other man in such a state of peace. Their usual pillow wall had been moved so that Ryan could cuddle the pillow in his state of panic. Shane kind of wished that it was him instead of the pillow currently in Ryan’s arms, but he’d never admit that where anyone could hear it. It wasn’t til recently that even Shane would admit it to himself, but he had a huge crush on his best friend. Seeing Ryan like this simultaneously made his heart soar and shatter because this is how he always imagined being with him would be like but he knew it wouldn’t ever become reality.

                Ryan began to stir again, and Shane quickly shut his eyes to at least pretend he was asleep. Getting caught watching his friend in the middle of the night might not go over so well, and he wanted to just avoid that situation entirely right now. He felt Ryan move around a bit, assuming that he was just trying to get comfy again until a gentle touch skimmed across his face, almost making him flinch. The touch continued, tracing in a seemingly random pattern over the cheek that wasn’t pressed into the pillow. Shane focused on keeping his breathing as even as possible as Ryan shifted again, this time tucking his head under Shane’s and throwing a careful arm across his waist.

                They were properly snuggling now, and Shane had no idea what to do with this information. It felt like his brain was melting trying to process what just happened, so he just went with it. When he was sure Ryan was asleep again (he could feel his breath puffing out steadily across the side of his neck), he slowly brought his own arm to rest on Ryan’s waist, gently pulling him even closer. Now cuddled close with him, Shane found himself finally nodding off. As unconsciousness beckoned him into its comfortable grasp, all he could think about was how perfect Ryan was for sleepy cuddling. He was the perfect size to just curl up around, and absolutely adorable when he was half asleep. And with that, Shane finally succumbed to the darkness behind his eyelids.

 

                They didn’t talk about it the next day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading the first chapter of my fic! It'd be awesome if you left kudos or comments, especially if you find any spelling, grammar, or punctuation issues
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, you can find my tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> I'm not sure when the next chapter will be up, but the next word is "Beauty"
> 
> Cheers!  
> -Lee


	2. Beauty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Beauty (n.): the quality of being physically attractive_

                Sun filtered in through the gaps of the blinds in the hotel, waking Shane up as the beams lit up his face. With a quiet grumble, he snuggled farther into his blankets and turned away from the window, not wanting to be awake yet. This was the bad part of letting Ryan pick his side first, he always got stuck with the side closest to a window. Shane tried to go back to sleep, but after being woken up already his brain was refusing to cooperate with his wishes.

                With a deep sigh, he slowly opened one eye, not quite willing to get up just yet. He was greeted with the most picturesque moment his brain could come up with. Ryan was sleeping peacefully next to him, the sunlight that had previously woken him up now highlighting his features; he was _beautiful_. Shane suddenly hated the morning light a little less.  With a soft smile, he carefully brought his hand up to Ryan’s face, gently tracing his features before stroking his hair. Shane pressed a small kiss to his nose, letting out a happy hum.

                Ryan began to stir and scooted closer to Shane, burying his face into Shane’s chest and wrapping an arm around his side. He loved these kinds of mornings, where they didn’t have to be up at any point and could just snuggle and enjoy each other’s company. Shane was so glad that they had finally gotten past the awkward middle of the night cuddling when they weren’t sure if the other liked them back. He couldn’t wait to see what lie ahead for them in the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chapter 2 of TSD!
> 
> It'd be really appreciated if you left a kudo or a comment, especially if you find any spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors
> 
> If you'd like to send me a prompt, you can find my tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> The title of the next chapter is "Crestfallen"
> 
> Cheers!  
> -Lee


	3. Crestfallen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Crestfallen (adj.): sad and disappointed_

                “Why does this always happen to me?” Ryan asked mournfully as he hung up the phone. He looked so crestfallen and down, Shane couldn’t stand it. This wonderful person was the literal embodiment of sunshine, nobody had the right to make him look like someone rained on his parade.

                “What happened?” Shane asked, wanting to know who’s blood he was going after.

                “They’re pulling Brent off the show, and if I don’t find someone for the next episodes they’re going to end it after the first season.” Ryan said with a sigh, face buried in his hands.

                “Yea, no, that’s not happening. I know how much work you’ve put into this, I’ll be your cohost if need be.” Shane said firmly, determined to make sure that Ryan’s baby, his passion, continued.

                “Wait, really?” Ryan responded, head quickly snapping up to look incredulously at Shane. “But... I thought you didn’t believe in this stuff?”

                “I don’t, but there’s no way in hell I’m gonna let your pride and joy die because of some stupid reason.”

                Ryan, with tears in his eyes, quickly got up from where he was sitting at the table. He ran over to Shane, surprising him with a hard hug. After Shane got over the suddenness, he wrapped his own arms around Ryan, returning the hug. Quiet and hitched breaths filled the air, and Shane just held Ryan even closer, not minding the tears that were soaking through his shirt.

                Ryan pulled back from the hug, trying to scrub the tears off of his face that was now burning red from embarrassment. “Sorry for dripping all over you, I’m just so happy.”

                “Hey, it’s okay, I get it.” Shane shushed him, reaching out and fixing Ryan’s hair that had been stuck to his face. He kind of wanted to pull Ryan back into another hug, but figured that could wait til after he helped his buddy get himself back together. He was just glad to see him back to his bubbly self, the only remnants of his sadness being the small wet spot on Shane’s shirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chapter 3 of TSD!
> 
> If you want to send me prompts or yell about AUs with me, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> The next chapter will be "Dusk"


	4. Dusk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Dusk (n.): the time when day changes into night and the sky begins to get darker_

                As the sun sank behind the trees, it cast the world in an enchanting orange glow. Shane and Ryan were on location, this time exploring an old cabin that lay deep within a forest. It was creepy not only because of the horrors that took place within its walls, but also the fact that it was disturbingly quiet. No birds called out their tunes as daytime became dusk; it was just disconcertingly quiet.

                Shane wasn’t scared necessarily, but he was very much off-put by the silence. Ryan was probably even worse off than him right now, he felt these things a lot more strongly than Shane did. A quick glance to his left proved that thought true; Ryan was stood as close to him as possible, shaking slightly with that look of fear he got sometimes.

                He was honestly surprised Ryan hadn’t had a panic attack of any sort yet doing this show. Ryan continually put himself into situations that would freak him out with zero regard to his own mental health for the sake of proving himself right. It concerned Shane sometimes, how dedicated Ryan was to his beliefs that he had to sacrifice some of his mental wellbeing for it.

                Lost in his thoughts, Shane failed to notice Ryan slowly creeping towards the foreboding cabin situated at the edge of the clearing. It was only the cracking of one of the floor boards that snapped his attention back to reality. He quickly walked over to the front of the cabin, finding Ryan standing half on the porch and half _through_ it. Ryan looked pale as a ghost, the suddenness probably startled him pretty badly.

                Shane took action, helping Ryan get his foot out from the busted part of the porch and checking him for injuries. He had a bunch of scrapes up along his calf, but otherwise was okay. Shane could tell by the look on Ryan’s face that they definitely wouldn’t be there long, especially now that night was starting to bring everything into creepy shadows.

                “You okay Ryan?” Shane asked, trying to bring Ryan’s panic down to a more manageable level.

                “I’m gonna be a hundred percent honest with you right now, I am the definition of not okay and would much rather scrap this episode right this second.” Ryan said in a rush, eyes darting to look at the tree line around them, the forest still deathly silent.

                “Not your worst idea little guy, let’s head back and actually sleep in a motel for once. We can always explore when it’s daytime y’know.”

                Ryan huffed out a relieved sigh, turning towards their vehicle and walking towards it, Shane not far behind. Shane took the responsibility of driving, not trusting Ryan to be very attentive at this point. Coming down from a panic like that took a lot out of a person, and Ryan was soon nodding off in the passenger’s seat.

                Shane turned the radio on, keeping the volume down as he drove through the dark forest, back into the town, and to the motel where they could sleep. He gently poked Ryan til he woke up, helping him drag his tired self to their room where he fell asleep again almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.

                A soft smile crossed Shane’s face at the sight of Ryan haphazardly sprawled across the bed, happily snoring into his pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chapter 4 of TSD!
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Another writer has started "The Believer's Dictionary", read that [here!](http://archiveofourown.org/works/12704016/chapters/28969380)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated!
> 
> The next chapter is "Embarrassment"
> 
> Cheers!  
> -Lee


	5. Embarrassment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Embarrassment (n.): a feeling of self-consciousness, shame, or awkwardness_

                [You (4:32 P.M.)] Hey Ryan, movie night??

                [Ryan (4:32 P.M.)] Hell yea! Be there in 10 =)

 

                Shane smiled down at his phone, happy that Ryan was on board for movie night. It was something they did on occasion, but this one would hopefully go a bit differently; he had finally gotten the up the nerves to confess to Ryan that he wanted to take things a bit farther than just super close friends.

                He spent the next ten minutes waiting for Ryan to arrive by nervously fiddling with things in his apartment, even though he already knew it was clean cause that’s what he’d been doing for most of the day.  Shane was startled out of his anxiety riddled thoughts by a quick knock at the door. Taking a few calming breaths, he walked over to it and opened it, revealing an obviously excited Ryan.

                “Hey big guy! What’re we watching tonight?” Ryan asked as he slipped past Shane into his apartment. He took his jacket and bag off, putting them on the table on his way to Shane’s living room.

                “Couple of sci-fi movies, pretty much whatever we can find on Netflix that looks halfway interesting.” Shane answered, closing the door and moving to the kitchen to get snacks together. He had a bowl of popcorn made already, one of the necessities of a good movie night.

                “Sounds good.” Ryan replied as he settled down on the couch, kicking his shoes off and getting comfy. He pulled the blanket off of the back of the couch and wrapped it around himself, snuggling into it with a happy smile.

                Shane walked back into the room, a bowl of popcorn and some drinks precariously balanced between his arms. He carefully set them down on the coffee table before sitting down to get the movies set up. At this point, his anxiety was through the roof, but he figured he might as well broach the topic before the movie started playing.

                “Sooo Ryan, I have something I’d like to talk to you about..?” Shane started, glancing quickly to Ryan who had apparently became a blanket burrito when he wasn’t paying attention.

                “What’s up Shane?” Came the slightly muffled reply.

                “Well… I sort of maybe have feelings for you that go past just… friends?” Shane said quickly, fiddling with the remote in his hands, not wanting to look up at Ryan. As the silence went on, his cheeks began to flush, showing his embarrassment. Biting the bullet, he shot a glance at Ryan, who was staring at him incredulously, yet had a smile on his face.

                “I.. uhm-” Shane stuttered, rubbing the back of his neck in one of his awkward mannerisms.

                “You,” Ryan started, Shane looking back at him again as he finally broke the silence, “are too adorable.” Ryan shifted closer, putting his hands on Shane’s face to move him closer as he pressed a quick kiss to his nose. “I like you too by the way, in case that didn’t answer your question.”

                The blush returned to Shane’s face again, this time not out of embarrassment but just because how cute Ryan was. They spent the rest of that night cuddled together on the couch, eventually falling asleep midway through the second movie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!
> 
> Thank you for reading chapter 5 of TSD!
> 
> If you want to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell about AUs with me, you can find me on tumblr [here!](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated!
> 
> The next chapter is "Frustration"


	6. Frustration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Frustration (n.): a feeling of anger or annoyance caused by being unable to do something_

                Frustration.

                Panic.

                That’s all he could feel right now, as he struggled to get the door to open up and rescue Ryan. They had been doing their thing where each of them go into a room for a couple minutes and come back out, but the door… was stuck. He could hear Ryan freaking out inside and the stupid fucking door wouldn’t open.

                Shane and their crew members kept pulling at it, desperation making Shane jittery. Slowly, too slowly, the door slid inch by inch, revealing the dark room behind it. As soon as the gap was wide enough, Shane squeezed between the wall and the door and flipped his flashlight on. He found Ryan curled up in the corner, face hidden by his hands and knees and slightly shaking.

                He approached him slowly, and called out his name so that he didn’t accidentally scare him and make the situation worse. Ryan looked up at him, tear tracks streaking his cheeks. Shane rushed over, falling to his knees and wrapping him up in a hug. Tears quickly soaked part of his shirt, he himself having a few dripping off of his face.

                At this point, the crew managed to get the door the rest of the way open. Shane picked up Ryan, who wrapped his arms around Shane’s neck, and brought him out of the room. After a quick assessment by their crew, they decided to call it for this episode, and head back to the hotel close by. Shane kept Ryan close to him as they walked out of the facility and back to the car. Ryan tucked himself close to him as one of the crew members drove, unwilling to detach himself after that experience.

                It was quite a few weeks before either of them would let the other go into a room alone on their film shoots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!
> 
> Thank you for reading chp 6 of TSD!
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell about AUs with me, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter is "Gold"


	7. Gold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Gold (n.): a soft metal that is very valuable and that is used especially in jewelry_

                This was it, he was going to finally do it. The ring box that had been riding in his pocket for about a month carried an extra weight, it would finally find it’s hopefully permanent home soon. Shane stuck his hand in his pocket, nervously fiddling with the edges of the box. He was waiting for Ryan to finish getting ready so they could go out to their little weekend vacation spot, a lovely log cabin nestled in a forest on a mountain.

                Finally, after what felt like eons to Shane but was actually only about 10 minutes, Ryan came bounding down the hallway from their room, an excited grin on his face. Before he knew it, their bags were all packed into the trunk of the car and they were on their way, happily singing along to the radio as Ryan navigated the mountain roads. At one point, a stream crossed across the road, and they stopped for a few minutes there. The cold water soaked into the bottom edges of their jeans as they waded around, laughs pealing loudly through the air as they splashed each other occasionally. This particular stream was full of a bunch of rocks with shiny patches, “mica” as google told them. Together, they found a few for keepsakes to bring back home.

                The sun was starting to set, and they wanted to get to the cabin before nightfall, so they reluctantly went back to the car and began their journey once again. Shane leaned his head against the window as Ryan drove, watching the myriad of trees and giant rock formations pass as they climbed higher and higher up. He was just drifting off to sleep when he felt the car stop, Ryan softly shaking him awake a few moments after. Shane blinked his eyes open sleepily, a smile crossing his face at the sight of the cabin. It was fairly large, nestled among the trees between two branches of the stream they had crossed earlier.

                Shane made his way out of the car, taking a moment to stretch out his limbs before going to help Ryan with their bags. Each moment they spent here, the more certain he was that this was going to be the right time to present the box hiding in his pocket. He hefted a couple of the bags up into his arms, and followed Ryan up the steps to the door of the cabin. Once unlocked, they stepped inside, marveling at it’s beauty. It was mostly a single level, but there was a small loft on one side of the room, containing the bed they would be sleeping in.

                They dropped their bags just inside the door before leaving and grabbing the rest of them. As Shane closed the trunk of the car, Ryan shot him a warm smile full of affection. Shane returned it as they walked side by side back to the cozy house.

                The rest of that night was spent exploring the cabin and snuggled on the couch, watching movies, reminiscent of when Shane first told Ryan his feelings. He thought of the box now sitting in the side table by the bed, deciding that tomorrow would be the day.

* * *

 

                Shane woke up slowly, stretching lazily then turning on his side, reaching for where Ryan should be next to him. Upon finding nothing but the other side of the bed, he opened his eyes, confused as to why there wasn’t a body next to him. He scanned the loft, still not finding Ryan anywhere. Shane got up and pulled a hoodie and a pair of sweatpants on before going to leave the space. However, just as he was about to go down the stairs, he had a thought. He walked quickly back over to the bed, digging in the side table and putting the box in his hoodie pocket, just in case.

                He headed down the stairs, peaking into the living room and the kitchen as he walked past. Ryan wasn’t to be found in either place, but coffee had been made at some point, and it was still warm. Shane glanced out the window to the porch as he made himself a cup of coffee, finding Ryan wrapped up in a blanket and leaning serenely against the railing in the early morning light, looking out into the forest in front of the cabin that was cloaked in a blanket of fog.

                Shane eased the door open, carefully shutting it behind him as he walked to where Ryan was standing. He was greeted with a small smile that was full of affection, and he returned it easily. Shane draped an arm across Ryan’s blanket covered shoulders, pulling him close as they watched the sun climb into the sky and dissipate the fog. He pressed a kiss to Ryan’s temple before moving again, turning Ryan to face him as he dug in his pocket for the box. This was the perfect moment, and he wasn’t about it let it go to waste after all this time.

                He slowly dropped to one knee on the cold wood of the porch, pulling the box from it’s hiding place. Shane opened it, revealing a simple gold ring, and it gleamed in the sunlight. Ryan let out a small gasp as he covered his mouth, and before Shane could even properly ask, he was already nodding his head yes and wrapping Shane up into a tight hug.

                After being released, Shane took the ring from the box and held Ryan’s hand as he slipped the ring into place, fitting perfectly. They shared a gentle and loving kiss before going back inside, holding hands all the while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading chp 7 of TSD!
> 
> If you want to send me prompts, tag me in things, or just yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter is "Heartbeat"


	8. Heartbeat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Heartbeat (n.): the action or sound of the heart as it pumps blood_

                It had been a rough day for Shane; people were constantly calling him to do videos or talk to him about deadlines and he wound up staying later than normal. Exhaustion clung to his bones as he unlocked the door to his apartment and a deep sigh escaped as he dropped his keys into the bowl on the table. As he set his bag on the floor, a pair of arms wrapped around his midsection, pulling him close to the person behind him.

                With a tired smile, Shane turned around, greeting Ryan with a quick kiss before returning his impromptu hug. His day may have been rough, but having Ryan around always made things better. Any other day he’d be content to just stand there and hug him, but he felt himself beginning to nod off. Ryan noticed, just like he always did, and broke the embrace to grab his hand and tug him towards their room.

                Shane followed him sleepily, scuffing his shoes on the carpet as he walked. Once they walked into the room, Shane immediately face planted into the bed, letting out a happy noise that was muffled by the comforter. As he lay there with his feet dangling off the end of the bed, he felt Ryan carefully slip his shoes off, dropping them on the floor nearby. The bed next to him dipped as Ryan joined him, shuffling for a minute before settling.

                Shane moved his face from where it had been smushed into the bed, finding his need to breathe more important than his need to sleep. Ryan was propped up against the headboard reading a book, looking incredibly snuggly and cute, so despite being dead tired, Shane moved farther up the bed. He carefully rested his head against Ryan’s chest, draping an arm across his waist and tangling their legs together. Shane quickly fell asleep to Ryan’s steady heartbeat and the occasional rustling of pages as Ryan continued reading.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chp 8 of TSD!
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in things, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter is "Impulsive"


	9. Impulsive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Impulsive (adj.): acting or done without forethought_

                Ryan was doing that thing again where he just kinda stared at him with something too close to adoration dancing in his eyes, and his brain just couldn’t help it anymore. Without thinking about it, Shane leaned forward and pressed a kiss against Ryan’s lips. Shane pulled back quickly, as if he had been burnt. His brain was running a million miles a minute, trying to figure out _why in the fuck did he just do that what the fuck Ryan was still looking at him why was he sti-_

                Shane’s thoughts cut out as Ryan’s hand made contact with his jaw, the touch gentler than he was expecting. He focused back on Ryan, still finding that look of adoration there. He watched with baited breath as Ryan inched closer to him, hoping beyond all hope that maybe, _just maybe_ , he didn’t fuck their friendship up completely.

                His eyes drifted shut with a hesitant touch to his lips, and he slowly returned the kiss, not wanting to break the tense mood that suddenly filled the room. As they both became more confident, the kiss grew more heated, eventually forcing them to break apart so they could breathe. They panted as they looked at each other, smiles working their way across their faces and quiet snuffs of laughter breaking the tenseness.

                For once, impulse actually worked out well for Shane.    

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chp 9 of TSD!
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in things, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated!
> 
> The next chapter is "Jovial"


	10. Jovial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Jovial (adj): cheerful and friendly_

                Shane has decided that Ryan is definitely the literal embodiment of sunshine and everything good in the world. He was always bubbly and jovial, even just walking into the same room as him would bring his mood up immediately. He’s not really sure if that’s cause of the crush thing or if it was just how Ryan was as a person, but both is probably likely.

                He’s not really sure why Ryan decided on that first day they were here together as interns that Shane would be his best friend, but he’s really glad for it. Shane had always been that sarcastic cynical person, and that took a special kind of person to deal with it constantly, but Ryan took that to a whole other level. Ryan would respond to his weird comments in kind, leaving them both gasping for air on a pretty common basis.

                Ryan’s mood just kind of always rubbed off on him. If Ryan was happy, so was he.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chp 10 of TSD!
> 
> If you want to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter will be "Kiss"


	11. Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Kiss (v.): to touch (someone) with your lips as greeting or as a way of showing love or sexual attraction_

                Shane absolutely loved Ryan’s kisses. They came in a variety of situations with a variety of feelings behind them, but every single one of them was special. His particular favorites were of the sleepy morning variety, when Ryan was only just awake enough to cover his shoulders and face in small chaste kisses as he snuggled against him.

                A close second was the rough ones that came after difficult days at work, when all Ryan wanted to do was unwind the stress of the day. These were the ones that led to him being pined up against a wall, regardless of the fact that he had the height advantage. Being kissed within an inch of his life was an experience on its own, but with _Ryan_ , it was all the much more sensationally overwhelming. He just had so much passion and determination, Shane would let it wash over him any chance it arose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chp 11 of TSD!
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter is "Lovestruck"


	12. Lovestruck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Lovestruck (adj.): experiencing intense feelings of romantic love for someone_

                Saying he had a crush was an understatement – he was officially lovestruck for his co-host. Shane wanted to be around Ryan all the time, but he loved him so much it hurt. It felt like someone was stabbing him in the chest with every soft smile, every quiet laugh, every mirthful look, but he just couldn’t bear to be away from him. Ryan was his sunshine, the other half of their package deal, the one person who could take everything he dished out in return it in kind.

                Every time Ryan called him “big guy” it took Shane’s breath away. Ryan would say it with such familiarity and affection, it knocked him for a loop sometimes. Surely Ryan had noticed how happy the nickname made Shane, as it just kept coming up in conversation. In kind, Shane started using “little guy” or occasionally “Ry”, and the happy smile he got in return just further cemented how much he loved him. Ryan was purely amazing and awe-inspiring, nobody could tell Shane otherwise.

                Shane treasured the fact that they sat next to each other in the office, something that had been happening for years at this point. After so long, he just started noticing things about Ryan’s habits and preferences, like how he played with paperclips when he was trying to figure something out, or how he’d just curl up in his chair sometimes. It was endearing, and Shane appreciated that he was in close enough proximity to witness these things and learn the ins and outs of Ryan Bergara. They even knew each other’s orders when it came to food just because they had been friends for so long.

                One of his absolute favorite things was Unsolved shoots. It takes a certain amount of trust to let someone see you in your most panicked state, and Ryan dove headfirst into that with Shane. Ryan trusted Shane to help him if things got too bad, knowing that he would drop the sarcastic asshole attitude as soon as Ryan showed any inkling of going into a panic attack. In turn, Shane knew Ryan would do the same for him if the situation ever arose, and that knowledge alone made him appreciate Ryan all the much more.

                Being this in love with someone sucked, it was true, but Shane would do anything for Ryan, even if it meant ignoring the pain in his chest with each show of casual affection between them. Even if he did eventually confess and was met with rejection, it’d hurt but he’d happily stay Ryan’s friend for as long as he’d have him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chp 12 of TSD!
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter is "Mark" (NSFW)


	13. Mark (NSFW)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Mark (v.): to make or leave a visible mark on (something)_

                Ryan had been teasing him at work all day; sitting next to him had its benefits, but when Ryan decided to fuck with him it was _bad_. It was hours of random occurrences of Ryan’s hand finding its way to his leg, and slowly traveling farther and farther up as he feigned not paying attention. Sweet little passing kisses suddenly had a lot more tongue and teeth than usual, leaving Shane panting as Ryan walked away. Now though, now it was his turn.

                As soon as Ryan closed the door behind them, Shane had him pined up against it. He threaded his finger’s through Ryan’s hair, gently tugging his head to the side and began to trail open mouthed kisses from his throat down to his shoulder. With his other hand, he pulled the neck of Ryan’s shirt just enough to expose his shoulder and collar bone, and set to work. Shane started with a spot close to Ryan’s arm, first leaving multiple kisses on the spot before sucking the skin into his mouth and worrying it with his teeth. He heard Ryan gasp above him, turning into a quiet moan as Shane released the now bruised skin. He repeated the process multiple times, each time getting closer to the one spot at the junction of Ryan’s neck and shoulder that made him absolutely _melt_.

                The moment his teeth even grazed it, Ryan was already a mess, panting and moaning as Shane left his marks. Shane lifted his head from Ryan’s neck, taking his thumb and putting pressure on the slowly purpling spots along Ryan’s shoulder. Ryan’s eyes rolled back into his head at the sensation, a loud moan sounding from him as his knees buckled slightly. If it weren’t for Shane pining him against the door, he’d probably be a puddle on the floor right about now.  

                Shane hauled Ryan back up to his feet and began to lead him down the hallway to their room, stopping occasionally to press him against the wall and kiss him as he pressed on his shoulder. It was slow going, but they eventually made it. Shane laid Ryan down on the bed and sat down next to him so that they could take their shoes off before really getting into it. Ryan scooted himself back against the headboard when he was done, Shane following not far behind him and settling down on Ryan’s thighs.

                They quickly returned to heated making out, more tongue and teeth than anything at that point. Shane snaked his hands up Ryan’s shirt and pressed his fingers on either side into his ribs, causing Ryan to moan and arch up beautifully. He was panting heavily as Shane pushed his shirt up even higher, eventually tugging on it as an indication to take it off. Ryan sat up with Shane still sitting on his legs, letting him pull the shirt over his head and throwing it somewhere in the room before doing the same to himself. As Ryan lay back down against the pillows, Shane began to trail kisses again, this time going from his collarbone and going down to just above where Ryan’s jeans sat on his hips.

                A couple more times of digging his fingers into Ryan’s sides and bruising kisses led to Ryan dragging his nails up Shane’s back, causing a full body shiver and a sudden desperation to fill his movements. Their jeans were quickly discarded, soon joined on the floor by their boxers. A litany of moans and gasps soon filled the air as Shane wrapped his hand around both of them, jerking them both off simultaneously. Neither lasted very long, the sensation proving too overwhelmingly pleasurable to even think about lasting more than a couple minutes. Shane collapsed on top of Ryan, heavy breathing beginning to even out somewhat. They sort of snuggled for a moment before Ryan pushed Shane off of him, both cringing as their collective cum smeared all over both of them.

                Shane got up and grabbed a washcloth out of the bathroom, quickly fixing the problem before going back to snuggling Ryan. Although he was the taller of the two, he soon found himself being spooned as they drifted in and out of sleep, Ryan holding him tight against his chest and nuzzling the back of his neck. Few moments were as perfect as this, Shane thought to himself as he finally succumbed to the warmth of Ryan behind him and the sleep that had been dragging at his eyelids, drifting happily off into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading chp 13 of TSD! We're halfway done now
> 
> If you'd like to send me prompts, tag me in stuff, or yell with me about AUs, you can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.skeptic-septic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated :)
> 
> The next chapter will be "Nervous"


	14. Nervous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Nervous (adj.): easily agitated or alarmed; tending to be anxious; highly strung._

                It wasn’t often that Shane saw Ryan as nervous as he was. As they drove closer and closer to the next filming site, it just seemed to get worse and worse. He was about to suggest that they call it off when his phone chimed “you’ve arrived at your destination,”  and Ryan bailed as soon as he stopped. Shane paused for a moment and sighed before taking the keys out of the ignition and following, the gravel of the driveway crunching underfoot as he went. Ryan was already unloading some of the equipment in the backseat, piling it neatly next to the car. He still looked more jittery than normal, and it definitely made Shane concerned about how this shoot was going to go. It was their one demon episode of the season, and according to what the family who last lived in the house had told them, it was going to be a doozy.

                They interviewed that family just yesterday, and they told a harrowing story. The people who lived there before them suffered a great tragedy, a murder-suicide involving a man and his mother. According to the police report that they’d been able to get a hold of, the man had caused brute force trauma to his dementia addled mother, and then strangled her. The day after that had occurred, he committed suicide in the backyard of the home, dying on the way to the hospital. The new family that moved in didn’t have any experiences with anything supernatural for the first few months, but then things started getting weird. In the room that the man’s grandmother was in, faint music could sometimes be heard, usually classic piano pieces, and her ghostly apparition could be seen in the days leading up to the anniversary of her death.

                The most concerning part of the story was the appearance of the demon entity. It was little things at first, hearing whispers in the silence or seeing shadows where there shouldn’t be any, but it quickly progressed. The family started getting scratches and bites randomly appearing overnight, then in broad daylight. Nightmares and night terrors were happening almost every night, both containing the same monstrous creature: a tall black shadow that rose out of the corner of the room, and slowly grew to consume to whole thing. It had unblinking white eyes, staring with pure malice as it grew and grew.

                After a month of dealing with this, the family couldn’t handle it anymore. They secured another house, and the nightmares stopped. They decided to keep this house though, with the plan to leave it to decay and hopefully, the thing that lived inside of it as well. After they had finished with the interview, Ryan had shot a look to Shane that was almost nothing but unbridled anxiety. He still had wanted to do the shoot though, even wanted to try staying the whole night there.

                They started doing the initial filming, taking a couple panning shots of the outside of the house as they walked to the front door, the keys in Ryan’s hand. Just like a bad horror movie, the door creaked as it swung open, the darkness of the hallway behind it being revealed. Ryan hesitated for a moment before carefully walking inside. Almost immediately, he spooked himself when his flashlight caught a mirror at the end of the hall, and he backed up into Shane who was only a few steps behind him.

                Ryan jumped away quickly as Shane laughed, the flashlight he was holding doing nothing to disguise the partial blush that was beginning to color his face. They walked around in the house for a bit before visiting the mother’s room. Ryan whipped out the spirit box, and Shane cringed at the loud static when it was first turned on.

                Nothing happened for the first minute or so, and then things started to come through. It wasn’t a voice, but music instead, its notes woven from the channels the spirit box was flipping through. When the music stopped, an accented voice came through, cutting out but blatantly clear “ _you shouldn’t be here”._

                The spirit box suddenly switched to horrible screeching noises, and Shane covered his ears as Ryan shut the box off. They just kind of looked at it sitting on the floor for a moment before Ryan scrambled up and out of the room with an impressive string of expletives. It seemed that everywhere they tried to use the spirit box after that, the screeching noise just wouldn’t stop. Ryan went outside and tested it out there, to see if it was busted or something, but it returned to normal as soon as he left the door. He stepped back inside, and the screeching started again. Unnerved, he decided to just turn it off and put it away.

                Ryan and Shane made their way to the garage, reportedly the site of the most demon activity, and started to set up to sleep. Surprisingly, Ryan was out almost as soon as his head had touched the pillow, but the nightmares were waiting for him. Shane was woken up by the sound of Ryan whimpering and thrashing in his sleeping bag not an hour later. He tried to shake him awake, but it wasn’t working. If anything, it seemed to be making it worse, and Ryan nearly decked him with his flailing.

                Shane got a hold of his arms before trying again, nearly yelling his name as he jostled him in the hopes that he would wake up. Thankfully, this time it worked, and Ryan woke up with a start. Tears started falling as he sat up, unexpectedly hugging Shane and burying his face into his chest. Shane was confused but wrapped his arms around Ryan as a wet spot was soaked into the front of his shirt, comfortingly rubbing one of his hands on Ryan’s back.

                They sat like that for a few moments before Ryan pulled back, sniffling and rubbing at his eyes. He started to explain to Shane that he had the nightmare with the creature, but he was watching it kill Shane and he just wasn’t able to move at all. Ryan was thoroughly freaked out, and he didn’t want to let go of Shane but he also just wanted to leave.

                As a compromise, Shane held his hand as they quickly packed the equipment up, and promptly left. The whole ride back home, Ryan didn’t let go of his hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it's been almost 4 months but I bring a gift in the form of a long awaited update! <3


	15. Obsessed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Obsessed (adj.): preoccupied with or haunted by some idea, interest, etc._

                Shane was obsessed with Ryan, in every meaning of the word.

                It started the first day he saw Ryan’s sunshine smile directed fully at him. It had happened during a comfortable quiet moment while they were sitting side by side on the office’s couch. There was plenty of room on it, but they sat with their shoulders brushing together and Ryan’s knee lazily draped on top of Shane’s leg as they both typed away on their laptops. Shane had taken a break, a quick scroll through his twitter feed before getting back to work. He happened upon something that he knew Ryan would get a kick out of and tagged him while trying to stifle his own laughter. Ryan’s phone pinged next to him, and after looking at it for a couple seconds, sent that sunshine smile his way. Shane had been around him enough to know that that was a look saved for only the closest people in Ryan’s life, and to have it be meant for him and him alone, it made his heart leap in his chest.

                Ryan’s laugh was the next thing to send him head over heels. Shane didn’t necessarily think most of what he said was as funny as his brain thought it was, but Ryan never failed to at least give a little chuckle to them. The special moments were when it’d send him into such an intense laughing fit that he could hardly breathe or make any sound. Shane would join in not long after, and the sound of their combined laughter filling the room made him think that this was definitely something he could get used hearing for a very long time.

                Few things could rival the softness of Ryan first thing in the morning. It wasn’t often that Shane got the chance to see it, as Ryan was usually the first one awake of the two of them, but it did happen rarely. He’d wake up just as the sun of the early morning began to hit his face, blinding him for just a second before his eyes adjusted. Ryan would be sleeping soundly next to him, usually facing Shane in an unconscious attempt to avoid the rising sun and be illuminated by it in the most enchanting way. Shane couldn’t help but just lay there quietly and drink in the moment, until eventually being greeted by tired eyes and a smile that was pure affection.


End file.
